The Take (60 page)

Overnight, it was as if the first wife, the one who had struggled to keep things going when times were hard, and the kids were small, the one who had borrowed money off her family when things were tough and spent her youth defending her husband to everyone who told her he was a waster, and who should now be enjoying the benefit of her husband's hard graft, was dumped unceremoniously and it was suddenly as if she had never existed.

The older children either accepted the new bird because she was a permanent fixture now, not a quick booty call (those girls knew their place and had the sense to ignore the man when he was out with family), or they ended up not talking to their fathers, and by taking their mother's side they then put themselves up for a life of hurt and betrayal.

It was awful seeing the look in the women's eyes when you met them out shopping, or at their children's weddings. You could see the bewilderment and the pain and, worst of all, you could see the way people treated them now they had been discarded. They were barely tolerated. She had witnessed first-hand the humiliation on their faces if the husband was there with the new wife, who Jackie had noticed nearly always got drunk and caused a scene because even the woman he had left for them was seen as a threat.

She had been pleased to see that once the girl had got the man off the wife, she then had to live with the knowledge that it could easily happen to her too, and she did not have the benefit of the years together that the first wife did.

The pain in the women's faces as they watched the men they still loved with their new and improved models had always been painfully evident to Jackie, no matter how brave a face they put on it. These women, like her, eventually realised that they had devoted their lives to, and showered all their love on, a man who had no concept of what they had gone through over the years, and who felt no actual guilt for casually smashing their lives to pieces.

That had terrified her for years, the prospect of Freddie discarding her with about as much care and attention as he would a cigarette butt, or a used Durex.

Now all her fears of that happening were gone. All her worries were gone, and she felt as if she had just thrown off the weight of the world from her shoulders.

She was glad he was dead, because dead meant that she could finally love the rotten bastard in peace.

Kimberley and her two sisters were outside the police station having a cigarette with a very subdued Dicky.

They had brought their aunt something to eat. She had accepted it gratefully, and they were pleased to see that she was not treating them any differently than she had before this awful day.

The fact their father was dead had not really sunk in yet. They were still trying to get their heads around the knowledge that it was Jimmy who had murdered him.

They had all been questioned and had all said the same thing, that they had no idea what could have happened. Until they were given the nod, that was all they were prepared to say on the subject.

'Poor Dad.'

Dianna sounded so sad, and Kimberley hugged her younger sister tightly. 'Yeah, as you say, poor Dad.'

She looked at Rox and they exchanged glances that told Dicky they were not going to be mourning the man they called father for very long.

'Let's get back to Mum, eh? Look, Glenford has just pulled up in a black cab.'

Dicky walked over to him and the two men shook hands.

'It all being taken care of. Get the girls home now, OK?'

Dicky nodded. 'The brief's here at last, and she ain't half got some trap. We could hear her bollocking them all from out here.'

Glenford grinned. 'She good all right. They been looking for me all over me work places, so I am going in voluntarily now and get it over with. From what I can gather from a friend in the Met, they are pulling in all his known associates.'

Glenford threw his joint away carelessly and said on a laugh, as he walked off, 'Better not bring that in with me, eh?'

Dicky laughed with him. He was absolutely thrilled to be a part of something this big, and he knew that this was important to his standing in the future. He would be watched and judged by them all to see how he handled this event.

Well, like most people he had never been Freddie Jackson's biggest fan. He had to deal with him because he loved his daughter, and she was being a blinder.

She was upset but not surprised by the news her father had been found in Epping Forest naked, beaten and partially burned. He was still smouldering when a man out dogging had tripped over him while walking back to his car after an enjoyable time watching couples having sex on their back seats. A fitting end for Freddie Jackson, when you thought about it.

Melanie was still crying, and Liselle, who loved her niece dearly, was on the verge of smacking her one.

This was her own fault, and Liselle was bloody annoyed that her niece was at the centre of this mayhem. If Mel had not chased the bloody glamour of criminals and all they entailed, she would not be in this predicament now. She was a nice girl, and she had a lovely nature, but she was only ever going to be bird material. She had too much trap and too much flesh hanging out to ever be anything else.

She only hoped that this had taught Mel a lesson on life, and about fully comprehending the world you chose to live in, both the good bits, and the bad. You had to be a certain type of woman to survive in their world, and she knew that from personal experience. You had to understand the men, and you had to understand what they did, and what drove them to do it. If you didn't grow up in their world, or know the unwritten laws, you were no good to them. You had to have complete acceptance of how they lived their lives, so no matter what they did, or what they were accused of, you only cared about them getting off with it. Nothing else mattered.

You also needed to be able to keep your mouth shut, and never, ever volunteer information about any part of your husband's life to anyone, no matter who they were.

It was a good life if you knew how to play the game. She had been doing just that for many happy years with her Paul, and she wouldn't change a second of it.

Now that Melanie had an insight into what could happen when you were in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong person, she might have a serious rethink about what she actually wanted out of life.

Paul sighed, and said to the distraught girl in as calm a voice as he could, 'Stop this, and listen to what I am telling you.'

Liselle went to the girl and slapped her across her face with all the force she could muster. 'For fuck's sake, will you stop fucking crying and listen to us. Do you understand how much shit you are in, girl?'

Melanie stared at her aunt with terrified eyes, and she finally stopped crying. Paul turned her to face him. 'Jimmy Jackson is a bad man. I would lay money on him being the baddest man in London, and you might be Liselle's niece, but that won't cut no fucking ice with him if you ever breathe one word of what you heard in the pub. This is serious, Melanie. You have to forget everything about what happened, right? It never happened. You are going on a long trip to Spain with Liselle tonight, and you will use the time there to empty your fucking brain. But I warn you, if you ever even hint that you saw or heard anything…'

He didn't finish what he was saying, because he could see from the utter terror in her big blue eyes that she would not repeat a thing to anyone. He only hoped she never forgot the fear she was feeling now, because she was in a very dangerous position. It was only the bit of blood she shared with his wife that had allowed her to pass go and collect two hundred.

Jimmy had not asked him to do anything, he didn't need to, Paul was a clearer-upper of unavoidable messes. That was what he was paid extremely well for and in the normal scheme of things he would have got someone to take care of this girl to guarantee her silence.

Liselle, bless her, was very tolerant of his work, but he knew she would draw the line at her niece going on the missing list.

Still, the girl had learned a valuable lesson. He hoped so, anyway. Liselle would talk her round over the next few weeks and reiterate the danger she would place herself in with a careless remark or a drunken statement.

It was late and he was tired. It had been a long old day.

Lena and Jackie were sitting together in Jackie's house, and for once Jackie was almost rational. The girls were in the kitchen making tea and sandwiches, and they were trying to digest the events of the last couple of days. They all knew that they had to keep any thoughts they might have to themselves. It was better for everyone that way.

It was nearly morning now. The light was creeping across the sky, and Jackie was pissed, but she was happy pissed. Lena said to her quietly, 'Tell me the truth, did you speak to Jimmy about you know what?'

Jackie looked at the woman she loved, and whom she had always felt treated her as second best and she said, scornfully, 'You know what?'

Lena closed her eyes in distress. 'Listen to me, and listen good, Jackie. You and the girls have to forget about what was said, do you hear me?'

Jackie sighed heavily and slumped down in the chair, her ample breasts suddenly lying on her belly.

Lena saw that she looked older than her years, that in itself was nothing new. But she also seemed a lot more relaxed somehow.

'Don't worry, Mum. I won't cause any trouble, I promise you.'

Lena was surprised at her daughter's answer and this showed on her face.

'I know he did it, Mum, I know what he was better than anyone, but it didn't matter to me. I loved him, see.'

Lena grabbed her daughter's hand and squeezed it tightly. 'I know you did, love.' She didn't add, God knows why, but the thought was in her head just the same.

'Now he is dead, I feel all light, as if a weight has gone off me. Does that make sense, Mum? I ain't glad he's dead, but I ain't sorry about it either.'

Lena understood what she was saying far better than her daughter realised.

'The newscaster on the telly said it was a gangland murder. He looked awful, Mum. Whoever did it done a fucking good job, I can tell you.'

Lena sighed again at the things this daughter said, but kept hold of her hand.

'I will miss him, but I feel really strange, Mum. I feel almost happy, and that is wrong, but I can't help it. I feel like I can finally
relax
. I realised today that I never ever relaxed, Mum, not properly, and now I just
am
relaxed. Does that make sense?'

Lena nodded and hugged her daughter. 'It's because you were so besotted with him. The love you had for him was almost like a mania, and you know something, Jackie? I would watch you sometimes, and my heart would break for you, because I knew you were hurting, and you were hurting because of your love. Love is supposed to make you happy, child, and your love for Freddie never did that. Now he's gone, of course you can finally relax, because for the first time since he came out of nick, you will know exactly where he is twenty-four hours of the day.'

She hugged her daughter gently to her again. 'I won't be a hypocrite. I never liked him, you know that, but I am heart sorry for
you
, for losing him, and I will always be there for you, and so will your dad. We might fight and argue, but we are family at bottom, eh?'

Jackie smiled sadly. 'I wonder if they've let Jimmy out yet.'

'We'll know as soon as anything happens, don't worry.'

Little Freddie watched his mother and his nana and wondered at the way everyone in this house seemed to thrive on emotional outbursts. His father's murder had not affected him at all, but he would still milk it for all it was worth. He would also keep a low profile where his granddad was concerned. He felt as if he could look right through him, and this made Little Freddie both wary and nervous, two emotions he had never experienced before.

But he knew that his granddad had sussed him out, and he was sensible enough to play this new development very carefully. Caution was his new watchword.

The girls came in and made a fuss as they fed him bacon sandwiches and drinks of Diet Coke. He looked suitably upset, and managed to watch his favourite videos in relative peace and quiet.

Jimmy got out of the shower and walked through to the huge bedroom. This room had once filled him with pleasure, and the house had been the culmination of everything he had ever wanted from his life. Now it was just a house, like any other. Homes were not just bricks and mortar, they were about the people who lived inside them.

Maggie was sitting on the giant bed. She looked very small and very vulnerable, and he loved the very bones of her, more now than at any other time in their life.

She passed him a glass of brandy and he sipped it before saying happily, 'Am I glad to get the smell of that police station off me. It stank in there.'

She didn't answer him, and he sat beside her on the bed, and grabbing her leg in a jovial way, he said loudly, 'Are we not talking, then?'

Maggie knelt up and pushing her hands through her hair she said quietly, 'Stop this, Jimmy, we have to talk about what's happened. I know you killed Freddie, I knew it was you as soon as I heard about it. Now you are acting like it's a normal day, and it ain't, you can't go through the rest of your life pretending that nothing
happened
. You think that if you pretend it didn't happen you won't have to deal with it, or the consequences. But I can't do that. I need to get this all out in the open once and for all.'

Jimmy got up and walked to the window. It was going to be a nice day, it was the best time, he always thought, the early morning.

'He
raped
me, Jimmy, and you have to look at me and tell me you don't hold it against me because I didn't tell you about it.'

He didn't turn towards her and she felt the sickness inside her once more. But she couldn't do this any more. She would rather he went and left her than pretend they were OK. Secrets had nearly destroyed her and her family, and she was not going to live like that any longer.